An estimated 4.7 million Americans aged 65 and older have Alzheimer’s disease, and this number is projected to climb to 13.8 million by 2050. As astounding as these numbers are, the earliest phases of the illness are not captured and are believed to be even more prevalent. With so many in our community afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease or caring for someone with dementia, the aggregate suffering is unfathomable.

What can be done to halt this societal scourge? The enormity of the challenge will require an “all-hands-on-deck” approach, spanning well beyond the scientists investigating the underlying molecular pathology and therapeutic targets, well beyond the entrepreneurs and chemical engineers seeking to design the next breakthrough drug, and well beyond the most innovative, risky, and disruptive ideas.

The endeavor will need to engage society into a volunteerism far broader than it has been, and to be complete, it must extend across the diversity of our community.

In this most human of diseases, the most critical piece to solving Alzheimer’s will be a broader engagement of volunteer participants in Alzheimer’s research. These heroes enable clinical research through the sacrifice of time and comfort to participate in rigorously conducted clinical trials and research studies.

You may recall public engagement in both cancer and AIDS, movements that ultimately resulted in AIDS and cancer patients living longer lives. The early clinical trial participants were the brave men and women who

began the process that dramatically reduced AIDS and cancer-related deaths.

Today, we are in sight of a new age of discovery in brain-related research and Alzheimer’s disease. We are gaining understanding about the underlying genetics and molecular pathways of the disease. Our hope and conviction are that this new knowledge will give us what we need to develop innovative and effective treatments for Alzheimer’s.

A major obstacle remains – we need efficient recruitment of volunteer research subjects. Often, we can’t find enough qualified people to volunteer, particularly in trials with extended time involvement, lumbar puncture, or commitment to brain autopsy at death, but it’s even true in simpler trials.

Advancing research will rely on altruistic and, for some of our studies, brave volunteers, so how does one motivate people to step forward and participate in today’s more involved and extensive Alzheimer’s disease clinical research?

We want to engage the 10,000 Baby Boomers and people well into their 70s and 80s – even 90s – that they can help and convince them of the tremendous value they can bring to this fight.

Without human studies, there will be no treatment and prevention. Without treatment and prevention, we can expect Alzheimer’s to bankrupt the U.S. health system along with an unbearable number of families.

The Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study at UC San Diego coordinates clinical trials around the country. Early phase clinical trials are of importance as they help us diversify the pipeline of what might eventually become the cure. A trial taking place at six clinical sites right now, called Discover, is testing a new drug, Posiphen. Posiphen works differently than the drugs tested so far and the new approach by which this drug fights the disease is very exciting.

In Discover, we are asking patients with memory loss, known as mild cognitive impairment, or early Alzheimer’s disease to stay a short time in the hospital for multiple tests, including a type of lumbar puncture that allows continuous sampling of spinal fluid. Spinal fluid mirrors what is going on in the brain and we can measure changes in production of APP/Abeta, tau/phospho-tau and alpha-synuclein, the important proteins implicated in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

The study asks a lot of its volunteers, but we feel the fight against Alzheimer’s requires innovative, bold techniques, always with great attention given to patient safety, including rigorous Institutional Review Board monitoring.

I am convinced of this: Volunteers in trials should be viewed as heroes for a vital cause – Regardless of whether the study of their participation produces the cure, these volunteers should be credited with the eventual cure. This disease will be cured through knowledge gained incrementally, and it is almost assured that the first person cured will be a clinical trial participant. What a wonderful day that will be.

For more information on Alzheimer’s clinical trials, visit www.adcs.org

Dr. James Brewer is Director of the Shiley-Marcos Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center and Chair of the Department of Neurosciences at UC San Diego.

Berwyn, PA, October 4, 2016 — QR Pharma, Inc., a privately held Phase 2 biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies for the treatment of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, today announced that Maria Maccecchini, Ph.D., President and CEO, will participate in the Neuro Advance Boston Conference being held on October 11, 2017 at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA.

Dr. Maria Maccecchini will be a speaker in a panel entitled “Challenges of CNS Translational Research.” Neuro Advance Boston is an off-the-record forum that brings together Heads from top biopharmaceutical companies, CEOs, CMOs, and CSOs working in the neurodegeneration, neuroscience and pain management space to discuss the critical issues facing neuro drug development.

About QR Pharma, Inc.

Headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, QR Pharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage company committed to developing therapeutics with novel approaches for the treatment of cognitive and functional impairment in neurological disorders.

QR is currently developing Posiphen as a disease-modifying drug for acute as well as chronic neurodegeneration and BNC for advanced Alzheimer’s disease. For more information on QR Pharma, please visit the company’s website, www.qrpharma.com

Berwyn, PA, January 24, 2017 — QR Pharma, Inc., a privately held Phase 2 biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies for the treatment of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, today announced the appointment of four world-class key opinion leaders to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). These new appointments join QR Pharma’s previous roster of impressive advisors in order to provide strategic leadership and direction to support the development of the breakthrough mechanism of action of Posiphen in neurodegenerative disease.

Posiphen is a first-in-class inhibitor of the neurotoxic aggregating proteins involved in the pathogenesis of conditions such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. Posiphen has been shown to reduce the expression of key neurodegenerative proteins including amyloid precursor protein, alpha synuclein and tau. This innovative mechanism of action could be applicable to several conditions in which multiple neurodegenerative proteins share responsibility for disease pathogenesis. Posiphen is currently being evaluated in a Phase 2A proof-of-concept/mechanism study for patients with early Alzheimer’s disease.

“We are thrilled to have attracted four world-class experts in the area of neurology to our team of scientific advisors,” stated Maria Maccecchini, Ph.D., President and CEO of QR Pharma. “They join at an exciting time for our company. Recent breakthrough discoveries regarding Posiphen’s mechanism of action suggest a first-in-class disease-modifying therapeutic with broad clinical application. The experience each of the new advisors brings to our team will be invaluable in realizing the full therapeutic potential of Posiphen in neurodegenerative disease.”

“Posiphen represents an opportunity to attack neurodegenerative disease at its roots,” commented Dr. Sidney Strickland, new Chairman of the QR Pharma SAB and Professor of Neurology and Genetics at Rockefeller University. “Unlike other therapeutic modalities that only attack a single axis of neurodegenerative disease pathogenesis, Posiphen targets multiple disease-causing proteins. I look forward to working with the fellow members of the SAB and QR Pharma leadership to advance this promising therapeutic agent for patients suffering from debilitating neurodegenerative conditions.”

The four new scientific advisory board members are:

William Mobley, M.D., Ph.D., is Distinguished Professor, Department of Neurosciences Florence Riford Chair for Alzheimer Research and Associate Dean for Neurosciences Initiatives. He is a member of the National Academy of Medicine. His research focuses on the neurobiology of neurotrophic factor actions/signaling and on the hypothesis that dysfunction of such signaling mechanisms contribute to neuronal dysfunction in developmental and age-related disorders of the neurosystem.

Sidney Strickland, Ph.D., is the Vice President and Dean for Educational Affairs and Research Professor, Patricia and John Rosenwald Laboratory of Neurobiology and Genetics at Rockefeller University. Dr. Strickland’s laboratory investigates how dysfunction of the circulatory system contributes to Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative disorders. He will serve as the Chairman of QR Pharma’s SAB.

Rudolph Tanzi, Ph.D., is Vice-Chair and Director of Neurology, Genetics and Aging, and the Joseph and Rose Kennedy Professor of Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital. Tanzi investigates the molecular and genetic basis of neurological disease and discovered the location of the Huntington’s disease gene. He co-discovered all three genes that cause early-onset familial Alzheimer’s disease, including the first familial Alzheimer’s disease gene, known as the amyloid β-protein (A4) precursor (APP), and the presenilin genes.

These new advisory board members join Dr. Jeff Cummings and Dr. Peter Davies, who already serve on the advisory board:

Cummings is a world-renowned Alzheimer’sresearcher and leader of clinical trials. He has been recognized for his research and leadership contributions inthe field of Alzheimer’s disease through the Henderson Award of the AmericanGeriatrics Society (2006), the Research Award of the John Douglas FrenchAlzheimer’s Research Foundation (2008), and the Ronald and Nancy ReaganResearch Award of the national Alzheimer’s Association (2008). In 2010, he washonored by the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatry with theirDistinguished Scientist Award. In 2011,he was awarded a Doctor of Science by his Alma mater, University of Wyoming. He was featured in the Gentleman’s Quarterly(June 2009) as a “Rockstar of Science.”

Cummings is interested in clinical trials,developing new therapies for brain diseases, and the interface of neuroscienceand society.

Cummings is a world-renowned Alzheimer’sresearcher and leader of clinical trials. He has been recognized for his research and leadership contributions inthe field of Alzheimer’s disease through the Henderson Award of the AmericanGeriatrics Society (2006), the Research Award of the John Douglas FrenchAlzheimer’s Research Foundation (2008), and the Ronald and Nancy ReaganResearch Award of the national Alzheimer’s Association (2008). In 2010, he washonored by the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatry with theirDistinguished Scientist Award. In 2011,he was awarded a Doctor of Science by his Alma mater, University of Wyoming. He was featured in the Gentleman’s Quarterly(June 2009) as a “Rockstar of Science.”

Cummings is interested in clinical trials,developing new therapies for brain diseases, and the interface of neuroscienceand society.

Cummings is a world-renowned Alzheimer’sresearcher and leader of clinical trials. He has been recognized for his research and leadership contributions inthe field of Alzheimer’s disease through the Henderson Award of the AmericanGeriatrics Society (2006), the Research Award of the John Douglas FrenchAlzheimer’s Research Foundation (2008), and the Ronald and Nancy ReaganResearch Award of the national Alzheimer’s Association (2008). In 2010, he washonored by the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatry with theirDistinguished Scientist Award. In 2011,he was awarded a Doctor of Science by his Alma mater, University of Wyoming. He was featured in the Gentleman’s Quarterly(June 2009) as a “Rockstar of Science.”

Cummings is interested in clinical trials,developing new therapies for brain diseases, and the interface of neuroscienceand society.

Peter Davies, PhD, is Director of the Litwin-Zucker Research Center for the Study of Alzheimer’s Disease, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research and Professor, Pathology and Neuroscience, at the Hofstra Northwell School of Medicine at Hofstra University. Davies’ research is focused on improving the understanding of Alzheimer’s disease to allow for the discovery, development and testing of effective therapies.

About QR Pharma, Inc.

Headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, QR Pharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company committed to developing therapeutics with novel approaches for the treatment of neurological disorders.

QR is currently developing Posiphen as a disease-modifying drug for acute as well as chronic neurodegeneration and bisnorcymserine (BNC) for advanced Alzheimer’s disease. For more information on QR Pharma, please visit the company’s website, www.qrpharma.com

Berwyn, PA., October 27, 2016 — QR Pharma, Inc., a privately held biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies for the treatment of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, has closed on $800,000 of Series A Preferred Stock financing. Existing investors Robin Hood Ventures and individual angels filled this round.

QR Pharma will use the funding to continue to develop its lead compound, Posiphen®, build a pipeline and to support the company through the end of a phase II clinical study in Alzheimer patients. “This financing together with $2M from the NIH provides QR with adequate means to test Posiphen for efficacy in a human phase II study conducted by ADCS,” said QR President and CEO Maria Maccecchini, PhD.

The drug QR is developing represents a new approach to the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Posiphen is neuroprotective. By inhibiting the synthesis of neurotoxic aggregating proteins it protects nerve cells from these toxic proteins and prevents them from dying.

About QR Pharma: Headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, QR Pharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company committed to developing therapeutics with novel approaches to the treatment of cognitive impairment in neurological disorders. QR has successfully completed animal studies in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease models; is expanding the drugs application to Huntington’s, glaucoma and traumatic brain injury, was awarded $3 M from the US Army to work in Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI); and has recently been chosen by the NIH for a human phase 2 clinical trial in Alzheimer’s patients.
For more information on QR Pharma, please visit the company’s website, http://www.qrpharma.com/.

Berwyn, Pa., October 4, 2016 — QR Pharma, Inc., a privately held Phase 2 biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies for the treatment of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, today announced that Maria Maccecchini, Ph.D., President and CEO, will participate in the Neuro Advance Boston Conference being held on October 5, 2016 at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA.

Dr. Maria Maccecchini will be a speaker in a panel entitled “2017 Market Outlook: Alternative Sources of Funding.” Neuro Advance Boston is an off-the-record forum that brings together Heads from top biopharmaceutical companies, CEOs, CMOs, and CSOs working in the neuroscience and pain management space to discuss the critical issues facing neuro drug development.

About QR Pharma, Inc.

Headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, QR Pharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company committed to developing therapeutics with novel approaches for the treatment of cognitive impairment in neurological disorders.

QR is currently developing Posiphen as a disease-modifying drug for acute as well as chronic neurodegeneration and BNC for advanced Alzheimer’s disease. For more information on QR Pharma, please visit the company’s website, www.qrpharma.com

Berwyn, PA, September 9, 2016 — QR Pharma, Inc., a privately held Phase 2 biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies for the treatment of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, today announced that Maria Maccecchini, Ph.D., President and CEO, will present a corporate update at the 23rd Annual BioCentury NewsMakers in the Biotech Industry Conference at 3:00 PM ET on September 9, 2016 at the Millennium Broadway Hotel & Conference Center in New York, NY. Dr. Maccecchini will also be participating in 1×1 meetings with investors and industry executives.

About QR Pharma, Inc.

Headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, QR Pharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company committed to developing therapeutics with novel approaches for the treatment of cognitive impairment in neurological disorders.

QR is currently developing Posiphen as a disease-modifying drug for acute as well as chronic neurodegeneration and BNC for advanced Alzheimer’s disease. For more information on QR Pharma, please visit the company’s website, www.qrpharma.com

Berwyn, Pennsylvania, November 2, 2015 – Maria Maccecchini, PhD, President and CEO of QR Pharma, Inc. is presenting a paper entitled “Analysis of Multiple Biomarkers and Factors in Blood and CSF in Phase 2 to Facilitate Choice of End Points in Phase 3” is part of a Forum on CNS Clinical Trials. The presentation is focused on the difficulties associated with clinical trials in Alzheimer’s disease and proposes a strategy to optimize development of its lead compound, Posiphen®.

The Forum addresses the slowing of drug approval, the exorbitant failure rate in CNS clinical trials and how to position CNS drugs for success. The event runs from November 2 to 3, 2015, in Bethesda, MD, and Dr. Maccecchini’s talk is on Monday, November 2, 2015 at 11:45 AM.

About QR Pharma, Inc.

Headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, QR Pharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company committed to developing therapeutics with novel approaches for the treatment of cognitive impairment in neurological disorders.

QR is currently developing Posiphen as a disease-modifying drug for acute as well as chronic neurodegeneration and BNC for advanced Alzheimer’s disease. For more information on QR Pharma, please visit the company’s website, www.qrpharma.com

http://qrpharma.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/home_4.jpg4491100adminhttp://qrpharma.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/qr-pharma-logo-for-menu-300x300.pngadmin2015-11-02 06:52:512016-09-27 15:52:15QR Pharma to Present a Paper on Clinical Development of its Lead Compound, Posiphen, in Alzheimer’s Disease

Berwyn, PA., May 26, 2015 — QR Pharma, Inc., a privately held biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies for the treatment of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, has closed on $5.7 M of Series A Preferred Stock financing. The round was comprised of $1.1 M of new investments and the conversion of convertible debt.

QR Pharma will use the funding to study its lead compound, Posiphen®, in a number of additional indications of neurodegeneration and to support the company through the end of a phase II clinical study in Alzheimer patients.

The round was led by QR Pharma’s chairman, Michael Hoffman; participants were Robin Hood Ventures, existing angel investors and additional angel investors from Delaware Crossing and from Keiretsu Forum. “This financing increases our investor base and expands our network. Together with $3M from the US Army and $2M from the NIH it provides QR with adequate means to test Posiphen to efficacy in humans,” said QR President and CEO Maria Maccecchini, PhD.

The drug QR Pharma is developing represents a new approach to the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Posiphen is neuroprotective. By inhibiting the synthesis of neurotoxic aggregating proteins it protects nerve cells from these toxic proteins and prevents them from dying.

About QR Pharma

Headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, QR Pharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company committed to developing therapeutics with novel approaches to the treatment of cognitive impairment in neurological disorders. QR has successfully completed animal studies in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease models; is expanding the drugs application to Huntington’s, glaucoma and traumatic brain injury, was awarded $3 M from the US Army to work in Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI); and has recently been chosen by the NIH for a human phase 2 clinical trial in Alzheimer’s patients.

QR currently has two product development programs: Posiphen as a neuroprotectant in a number of neurodegenerative diseases and BNC for advanced AD.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release concerning the development of QR Pharma’s products and the potential benefits and attributes of such products are “forward-looking statements”, as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, assumptions and uncertainties that could cause actual future events or results to differ materially from such statements; they are made as of the date of this press release.

Berwyn, Pennsylvania, May 11, 2015 – Maria Maccecchini, PhD, President and CEO of QR Pharma, Inc. and Philip A. Sharp will be discussing “Secrets of a Science: Challenges and Opportunities of Biomedical Research”. The conversation will span the progress of Science from its beginnings into the future. The event is part of a Heritage Day celebration being held by the Chemical Heritage Foundation on May 14, 2015.\

Dr. Maccecchini will converse with this year’s Othmer Gold Medal recipient Dr. Phillip Sharp, Professor, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The Othmer Gold Medal will be awarded to Dr. Sharp by the Chemical Heritage Foundation in recognition of his outstanding activity in such areas as innovation, entrepreneurship, research, education in the field of Chemistry.

Dr. Sharp is also the recipient of the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his landmark work in the mechanisms of RNA splicing.About QR Pharma, Inc.

Headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, QR Pharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company committed to developing therapeutics with novel approaches for the treatment of cognitive impairment in neurological disorders.

QR is currently developing Posiphen as a disease modifying drug for acute as well as chronic neurodegeneration and BNC for advanced Alzheimer’s disease. For more information on QR Pharma, please visit the company’s website, www.qrpharma.com